Toe guard

ABSTRACT

A toe guard, for supporting bedding or other covering, which is worn on the foot in the manner of a sandal. A heel cup with a retaining strap holds the guard in place and an adjustable guard band of straplike, open loop form encompasses that part of the foot forward of the heel. Actual contact of the guard with the foot is minimized to avoid discomfort.

United States Patent Storer 1 Feb. 22, 1972 [54] TOE GUARD [72] Inventor: Arthur J. Storer, Mackay, Idaho 83251 [22] Filed: June 20, 1969 [21] Appl. No.: 835,061

[58] Field otSearch ..128/80 R, 80 J, 157, 581,582, 128/583, 584, 153

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,844,146 7/1958 Perdue 128/157 3,086,522 4/1963 Fr0hmader.. 128/80 J 1,301,491 4/1919 Nelson ..128/80 J FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 1,087,175 2/1955 France ..l28/80 .1

Primary Examiner-Robert W. Michell Assistant Examiner-L. Anten Att0mey-I(nox & Knox [57 ABSTRACT A toe guard, for supporting bedding or other covering, which is worn on the foot in the manner of a sandal. A heel cup with a retaining strap holds the guard in place and an adjustable guard band of straplike, open loop form encompasses that part of the foot forward of the heel. Actual contact of the guard with the foot is minimized to avoid discomfort.

2 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures PATENTEDFE-BZZ I972 v n llllllmlm ill] INVENIOR. ARTHUR STORER 1421 & 1640::

TOE GUARD BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The disclosure relates to bedding supports and specifically to a protective toe guard.

Supports for holding bedding clear of portions of the body are usually either structural frames inserted under the bedding, or attachments worn on the body. Frames are cumbersome and often damage the bedding. Attachment types have multiple straps or harness arrangements, with leg and foot enclosing portions and are uncomfortable to wear for prolonged periods.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The toe guard described herein is worn on the foot in the manner of a sandal and is light in weight and comfortable to use. A heel cup is held by a single strap and supports a guard band which encircles the foot in outline form with a suitable clearance, the band being adjustable to the size of the foot. Contact of the guard with the foot is minimized to avoid irritation and reduce perspiration.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a top plan view of the complete toe guard;

FIG. 2 is a side elevation view thereof;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken on line 3-3 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged sectional view taken on line 4-4 of FIG. 2; and

FIG. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken on line 55 of FIG. 2.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The toe guard comprises three separable parts, a heel cup 10, a retaining strap 12 which may be called an instep strap and a guard band 14, all of lightweight material such as plastic or the like. As shown, the unit is made to fit the right foot, a left foot unit being opposite. However, it is feasible to make the unit substantially symmetrical for use on either foot.

The heel cup is a molded element, smoothly contoured, and having thickened sidewalls 16. On the outside of each sidewall at the upper front portion is a projecting stud l8, strap 12 having spaced holes 20 to fit the studs with a firm press fit, so that the strap can beadjusted as necessary. To avoid any projections 'which might catch on bedding, the studs 18 are recessed in shallow channels 22 in sidewalls 16, the ends of the strap fitting into the channels when secured on the studs.

Guard band 14 is a narrow elongated element shaped as an open loop to fit around the planforrn outline of the foot, with sufficient clearance to minimize rubbing. The guard band is somewhat resilient but has sufficient stiffness to retain its form while supporting bedding over the foot. On the forward portion of guard band 14 are inwardly extending upper and lower are outwardly convex to provide a smoothly curved exterior surface as best illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 5. To allow for adjustment of the guard band for different foot sizes, the rear end portions 28 of the band fit slidably into longitudinal channels 30 in the lower portions of sidewalls 16, the lower edges of the band ends fitting into undercut grooves 32. The upper portion of each channel 30 has longitudinally spaced notches 34, each end portion having a projecting tab 36 which is a firm press fit in the notches. Adjustment is made by springing the end portions 28 outwardly at the top, as indicated in broken line in FIG. 4, sliding the guard band to the required position and snapping the tabs 36 back into the respective notches 34. In normal use it will be unnecessary to adjust the band, once set to a comfortable position. The adjustment means shown for the guard band and the instep strap are merely examples and other means may be equally suitable. In use, the sole of the foot of the user will be disposed, uncovered, on the side of the band 14 remote from the instep strap 12 as clearly indicated in FIG. 2.

With the heel resting in the heel cup and the foot upright, the major portion of the foot is free of contact with the guard and the bedding or other covers are held completely clear of the foot. This greatly reduces irritation and perspiration. The foot has some freedom of movement within the guard, and the guard moves with the foot when the position is changed.

I claim: I

l. A toe guard to be worn on the foot in the manner of a sandal, comprising;

a heel cup having means for attachment to the heel of a foot;

and a substantially rigid guard band secured to and extending as an open loop forwardly from said heel cup, along the sides of the foot and in front of the toes. said guard band being a narrow elongated element shaped in the general horizontal peripheral outline of an entire foot forward of the heel said means being an instep strap and portions of said guard band forwardly of said heel cup having substantially rigid, spaced tongues unitary with said band extending above and below the guard band, said tongue being outwardly convex and inwardly concave to accept forward lateral edge portions of a users foot and to ensure retention of the toe guard on the users foot, and said tongues are positioned and dimensioned so that the sole of the foot is disposed beyond said band on the side of said band remote from said instep strap.

2. The structure of claim 1, wherein said guard band is longitudinally adjustably secured on said heel cup.

mun n1: 1 

1. A toe guard to be worn on the foot in the manner of a sandal, comprising; a heel cup having means for attachment to the heel of a foot; and a substantially rigid guard band secured to and extending as an open loop forwardly from said heel cup, along the sides of the foot and in front of the toes, said guard band being a narrow elongated element shaped in the general horizontal peripheral outline of an entire foot forward of the heel said means being an instep strap and portions of said guard band forwardly of said heel cup having substantially rigid, spaced tongues unitary with said band extending above and below the guard band, said tongue being outwardly convex and inwardly concave to accept forward lateral edge portions of a user''s foot and to ensure retention of the toe guard on the user''s foot, and said tongues are positioned and dimensioned so that the sole of the foot is disposed beyond said band on the side of said band remote from said instep strap.
 2. The structure of claim 1, wherein said guard band is longitudinally adjustably secured on said heel cup. 